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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28371093">Restraint</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/DRHPaints/pseuds/DRHPaints'>DRHPaints</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Barry (TV 2018), Bill Hader - Fandom</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst, Anxiety, Blow Jobs, Cunnilingus, Denial of Feelings, Depression, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Enemies to Lovers, Explicit Language, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Face-Fucking, Fluff, Guilt, Gun Violence, Implied/Referenced Domestic Violence, Masturbation, Military Backstory, Power Dynamics, Restraints, Seduction, Self Confidence Issues, Self-Harm, Shame, Smut, Trauma, Vaginal Fingering, Vaginal Sex</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-27</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-27</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 23:34:32</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Explicit</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>11,976</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28371093</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/DRHPaints/pseuds/DRHPaints</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>When she catches him killing her abusive boyfriend, Barry has no choice but to take Jade hostage. As the two get to know one another, however, an unexpected attraction develops.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Barry Berkman/Original Female Character(s)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>10</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Requested by soggybucket on tumblr. Hope you enjoy!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Cranking </span>
  <em>
    <span>Enter Sandman,</span>
  </em>
  <span> Barry’s knuckles whitened on the steering wheel as even Metallica’s heavy tones couldn’t drown out the persistent thumps and screams radiating from the trunk.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Barry tied her up securely. He thought. He hoped. If she should happen to wiggle herself loose, happen to be aware of the trick to punch out the taillights and alert the car behind him, Barry would be worse than fucked. Foot hitting the pedal in his anxiety, Barry immediately withdrew. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Getting pulled over for speeding wouldn’t be any better, dumbass.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>After the seed of death sprouted in the forehead of Thomas Mercadian, Barry dismantling his gun and tucking into the back of his black pants, his head whipped around at a smoky, confused voice. “Tom?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Blood red lips parted in fear and ankles wiggling in skyscraper heels, a curvaceous woman gawked at the scene in her too-short purple dress, casting her emerald eyes to Barry for an explanation.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Barry didn’t want to, but he saw no other option. Well, that wasn’t quite true. There was one other choice before Barry, but he simply couldn’t bring himself to do that to the poor woman now trapped in the rear of his vehicle who merely found herself in the wrong place at the worst of times.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Darkness. A bump. Another one. </span>
  <em>
    <span>This asshole can’t fucking drive. </span>
  </em>
  <span>Jade didn’t know the identity of the tall stranger who shot Tom, but as far as she was concerned, good fucking riddance. Rubber-wrapped wire cutting into her calves, Jade thrashed, slamming her knees forward with a shriek. When she happened upon them, Jade couldn’t comprehend the scene until a powerful pair of arms dragged her out the door, a big hand smacking over her mouth. Disoriented. Frightened. Perhaps the oddest part of the encounter turned out to be that, as he bound her limbs, threw her in the trunk, making certain Jade’s scarlet tresses were out of the way before enclosing her in false night, the intruder’s quivering pink lips never stopped apologizing.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Crunching to a stop in the snow drift, Barry thanked the season and the cover of darkness as he walked around to the back of the car, street surrounding his derelict building deserted. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Keys poised in his hand, Barry assumed a slight crouch before he pushed the button. Still within the confines of his jumper cables, a feral face snarled, surrounded by a wasp’s nest of red. “</span>
  <em>
    <span>You motherfucker! Let me g--”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Barry clamped a huge hand over mouth, cobalt eyes darting around the icy Cleveland street as he hauled her from the opening and slammed the trunk shut with an elbow. “I’m sorry. Please. Be quiet. I’m sorry…” Constantly muttering as he wrestled her to the entrance, Barry didn’t want to breathe a cloud of subtext into the frigid air. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Please don’t make me kill you.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Pinning her to the door, Barry fished his keys from his pocket, peering through the side window and seeing no one inside. Barry yanked her down the hall, lengthy fingers barely muffling her screeching as shapely legs struck out, desperately trying to kick at the walls. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Please...just. I’m sorry. Please be quiet. I’m sorry. Fuck…” Reaching number 2A, Barry fumbled at the lock and she took advantage of his distraction, planting her heels firmly in the door and launching him backward. Broad back slamming into the opposite apartment, a grunt shot out of Barry and he re-doubled his grip around her worming, voluptuous body. “Fuck! Okay…” Looking over his vast shoulder in terror, Barry rushed back, jamming the key in and hoisting her across the threshold.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Door closing behind them, Barry’s sapphire eye hit the peephole with breath held and teeth clenched, sculpted jaw flickering as he watched, waited. A minute later old Mrs. Rutherford emerged, a rickety, “Hello? Who’s there?” echoing as she leaned out of her doorway before shrugging and wobbling back inside.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Shit…” Barry deflated, and in the second he loosened his grip the woman brought an icepick heel down on his toe. “FUCK!” Grimacing, Barry’s strong arms coiled around her, bringing her past the dingey kitchen and toward his bed. Instantly a shrill note of horror entered her screams, fresh fuel entering her vicious thrashing. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, no, I’m not going to hurt you, okay?” Barry tried reassuring her, though a searing guilt coated his stomach at the thought that he probably inflicted some damage already in getting her this far. “Please. Don’t worry. Just…” Holding her against the wall, Barry tugged open his dresser drawers, flinging items about until he came up with a fresh pair of socks and two old ties. “Okay...come on. Fuck. I’m...I’m so sorry…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Barry slammed her down on the bed, her green eyes marbles of anguish in her skull as she started to cry, breath hitching beneath his hand. “No...no. I’m...I’m not going to do...that. Okay?” Removing his fingers, Barry quickly replaced them with the socks and snapped up one of her wrists. “I won’t hurt you and I won’t touch you. I promise. Just...I have to tie you up and… Please. Just...please, be quiet.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As he secured her left hand, the other bashed him about the head and Barry ducked, wincing. Freeing the socks from her mouth before he could jog around to the right side, she inhaled a mighty breath, gaze hateful and voice a canon. “HELP! ANYONE! HELP! PL--” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Barry gagged her again, nostrils flared and shaking his head at himself as he used his singular good black tie to restrain her against the wooden bedframe. “I’m sorry. Fuck… I’m so sorry…” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Arms useless and speech stolen, she glowered at him for a second before her legs kicked a tantrum in the sheets, head tossing from side to side with smothered wailing. Once she settled slightly, Barry brought a large trembling hand to his brow. “Alright, so, um…” Fingers tapping at his thick thigh, Barry inhaled sharply, looking to the ceiling. “I...I’m sorry. I...I just couldn’t...I had to take you here. After what you saw, it’s… Well…” Square chin ticking from side to side, Barry shook out his limbs and blinked. “Yeah. But like I said. I’m not going to hurt you. I won’t touch you.” Noticing her skirt bundled up to her waist in her struggling, Barry’s breath caught. “Um...here…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Barry removed the remaining loose loops of the jumper cables, tossing them aside and hastily covering her with the red and gray striped blanket, not wanting those black lace panties winking back at him for a second longer than necessary. “There. Yeah…” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Minuscule studio bereft of places to sit, Barry leaned back against the wall, poorly insulated windows whispering a draft over his pale skin as his bouncing blue eyes studied everything in the room but the woman captive on his bed. Barry folded his top lip under, going to the kitchen and cracking open a Red Bull even though he knew caffeine to be a mistake in his amped state. He needed something to do with his hands. Somewhere to hide. And behind the smudged, supposedly white cabinets, Barry could see but a sliver of her ankles.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Okay, Jade. Breathe. Just breathe. </span>
  </em>
  <span>Jade didn’t know why she bothered trying to calm herself down. Probably the worst situation she could find herself in, freaking out seemed perfectly acceptable. But, as she struggled, only serving to pinch her wrists tighter, Jade supposed it wouldn’t solve anything. </span>
  <em>
    <span>And he did say he wasn’t going to hurt me, right? I don’t know if I can believe him, but…</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Sitting up as much as she could in her restricted position, Jade observed a mere hint of the tall, broad man; blue eyes as dark and hopeless as his tiny apartment as he sipped, sipped, sipped in silence.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>What the fuck are you going to do with her, Berkman? </span>
  </em>
  <span>Barry drank and mulled. Call Fuches? With a wave of nausea, Barry had a feeling he knew exactly what Fuches would tell him to do to remedy the situation, and he crossed that off his list.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Let her go? </span>
  <em>
    <span>Okay, enjoy prison, Berkman. </span>
  </em>
  <span>She could describe him. Where he lived. For all Barry knew, she clocked his license plate at some point, too. Yeah, no. Not a viable choice, either.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>So...what? Barry had no idea. He needed to think. And in the meantime, he supposed they would have to make this work. Somehow.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Approaching with an energy drink in his hand, he set the can on the bedside stand and scratched his stubbled cheek. “Okay, so, um…” The man didn’t seem to be able to look at Jade, his eyes much like his looming body, constantly moving, never comfortable, never able to settle. “So we’re going to have to find a way to communicate here. I assume if I take that out of your mouth you’re just going to scream again, so, um…” Drawing a quick breath, his nostrils flared and he nodded too quickly. “So for now, just...just blink once for yes, twice for no, okay? And I’ll...I’ll ask you a few things...does that sound good?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>One reluctant blink. “Okay.” Barry smiled in crooked relief, fingers rattling at his thighs as he made himself look into her face, pushing away his brain’s prompting that, were she not glowering at him with deepest loathing, she would be quite beautiful. “So...does anything hurt? Did you get injured at all?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Surprised, Jade almost blinked inadvertently, but then offered two intentional ones, his deep blue eyes thoughtful as he bobbed his head above. “Okay. Are you hungry?” A single. “Cool, me too.” Half grin decorating his wide mouth, he glanced over his broad shoulder and sighed. “I don’t really have anything here… Do you like pizza?” </span>
  <em>
    <span>Yes</span>
  </em>
  <span>. “Pepperoni okay?” </span>
  <em>
    <span>Why not? </span>
  </em>
  <span>“Alright, I’ll...I’ll order that then. Are you thirsty?” </span>
  <em>
    <span>Parched</span>
  </em>
  <span>. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>With a nod, Barry disappeared, returning with a glass. “Okay…” Scanning her face, Barry’s fingers hovered in front of her mouth. “If I take this out, will you be quiet? Because I…” Expression pained, Barry glanced at the water. “Fuck...I really don’t want to deny you water or anything…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She blinked and Barry swallowed. “Alright…” Plucking the socks away, Barry held his breath, but no shouts left her as Barry brought the glass to her red lips. “Okay...here you go.” A dribble snuck out of the corner of her mouth and her auburn brows knit together in frustration. “Oh...sorry.” Agile fingers cupped the back of her head, gently holding her aloft before Barry helped her drink again. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Taking a couple of swallows, Jade nodded. “Thank you.” </span>
  <em>
    <span>Wait, why the fuck am I thanking this asshole?</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sure.” Barry retracted his arm, starting to straighten up, but before his tall stature unfurled he saw bruises splashed over her ivory neck, her upper arms; purple, blue, green, and angry. “Jeez, you…” Fingers almost touching her, Barry thought better and recoiled. “I’m so sorry. You said I didn’t hurt you. Fuck… I’m… I’m so sorry…” Grinding his teeth to powder, Barry’s jaw hardened and he fisted his hands at his sides, eyelids heavy with shame as he closed out the image of her damaged body.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh…” She inspected herself and shook her head. “No, that wasn’t you. Those are...that was Tom.” Barry looked at her, prominent brows gathered and lips pursed. “Yeah, he was...he was a piece of shit.” Shrugging as best she could in her position, she sighed. “Can’t say I miss him.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh…” Nodding significantly, Barry shoved his large hands in his pockets. “Yeah… Well, I’m...I’m really sorry. He…” Barry looked over her marks, in various degrees of healing, and were Tom not already extinguished by his own hand, the flame of rage ignited within his built chest would’ve roared into a bonfire. “He shouldn’t have done that to you. You didn’t deserve that.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thank you.” Jade murmured softly, unable to meet his eye. A beat of silence passed between them before she cleared her throat. “But yeah, so...I’m not upset he’s dead or anything. You did me a favor. I’m glad. So you can just…” Locking into Barry with her viridescent gaze, a note of plea snuck into Jade’s voice. “Let me go.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span> Mouth tight, Barry’s dark eyebrows drew together. “I can’t.” Sighing, the shelf of his shoulders broke and his face turned away. “I can’t risk that. I’m sorry…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So…” Swallowing past the trepidation in her throat, Jade looked up at this man, her captor, hands numbing above as the wind shouted in protest against the windows spiderwebbed with ice, and her voice wavered. “What’re you going to do with me?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Barry stared at her for what felt like a long time. “Right now…” Flinty voice crackling through his pink lips, Barry nodded slowly to himself. “I’m going to order a pizza. So...yeah…” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Disappearing into the kitchen, Jade could see a glimpse of him, glow of a phone screen on a concentrated face as he tap, tap, tapped in an effort to bring them sustenance. Her initial panic leeching away into the brown plaid sheets, Jade took a moment to peruse his living space. Aside from the brazen Metallica poster overhead, there wasn’t much one could call decoration. Though that wasn’t surprising for a man his age living alone, Jade supposed. With the exception of the gigantic television, the place was a dump. Lifting her head, Jade narrowed her emerald eyes and read ‘United States Marine Corps’ emblazoned on the red flag above his entertainment unit. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Huh...I wonder… </span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay, so…” Barry replaced his phone in his pocket and returned to her side. “It should be here soon. With the roads…” Eyeing the powder pummeling the window, Barry stretched out his lower lip. “It might take them a bit. But...yeah…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Alright…” Jade nodded, shifting a little on the mattress. “Um...could you take off my shoes? They’re really uncomfortable.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, sure.” Flipping back the blanket without thinking, her scanty black underwear waited for him and Barry blinked. “Shit, I, um…” Barry replaced the covers, getting at her feet from the other end as a flush invaded his pasty neck. “I’m sorry. I forgot...I didn’t mean to…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He delicately unbuckled the straps at her ankles, large hands shockingly dexterous as he removed the left, then the right, and Jade smirked at his flustered countenance. “That’s okay.” Swishing herself higher on the bed as he tucked her heels underneath, Jade decided if this man was going to play noble while keeping a woman hostage in his bed, she wasn’t going to make it easy. “Hey, could you pull my skirt down? That’s uncomfortable, too, actually.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Barry froze in his crouch, blinking. “Um...alright…” Pink lips hidden and nostrils gaping, Barry folded down the blanket an inch at a time until he crossed the shores of red. Pinching the teensiest bits of fabric on each side, he slipped the laughably short skirt down her creamy thighs in one fluid motion, clearing his throat and tossing his eyes to the wall. “Do you...are you warm? Do you want the blanket then, or, um…” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The entirety of his tall body fidgeted and Jade passed a chuckle off as a cough. “Yeah. Take it off.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Barry’s neck twisted. His eyes narrowed. Something in her tone as she uttered those last three words sounded almost...sultry. “Okay…” Removing the blanket, Barry set it aside and she cricketed her appealing stems together, gliding one foot up, up, up, and then down. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Damn it, Berkman. Don’t look at her underwear…</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Notification sounding on his phone, Barry glanced at the screen. “Oh, pizza’s almost here. Okay, so…” Barry picked up the socks, approaching her with an expression of distaste. “Sorry…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Can’t I just…” Jade frowned at the sodden fabric. “Be quiet?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I...I can’t risk that.” Inching them forward, Barry didn’t want to have to pry her mouth open. “I’m sorry.” Red lips parting with a defeated sigh, Barry pushed the bundle in, trying to be gentle and avoiding her gaze. “Okay, I’ll...I’ll be right back.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Hearing the door click shut behind him, Jade tried shoving the wet wad forward with her tongue, but it proved useless. But when she retracted her left arm, a looseness, a smidge of unraveling. With enough movement, enough work, maybe…</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>But what happens if he catches me? </span>
  </em>
  <span>Surely he would simply adhere Jade to the mattress again. There didn’t seem to be any danger to the man. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Honey, reality check. You saw him fucking shoot Tom…</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Speaking of Tom, where the hell did Jade think she was going if she did get free? After a harrowing year living under Tom’s dominion, the monstrous man taking over her bank accounts, her body, her life; now that he was dead, what was Jade supposed to do?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay, sorry…” Barry set the pizza box on the stove, rubbing warmth back into his firm arms as he toed off his boots. “Had to meet him outside. Because, well…” Grabbing a plate and paper towels, Barry removed the gag. “Hmm...well. I guess there’s a couple of ways we can do this.” Barry balanced the food at his hip, scratching his square chin in thought. “Um...I can feed you. If you want...though, that’s probably going to take a long time. Or I can undo one of your hands, but, um…” A stern resignation flooded his voice as he held a wide palm aloft. “If you try to hit me, or get away, I’m just going to have to put it right back up there, I guess…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’d rather eat myself.” Jade nodded. “I won’t hit you again or anything.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Cool, thanks.” Starting to untie her right wrist, Barry paused and blinked down at her. “Wait, you’re not a lefty, are you?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Chuckling, Jade shook her head. “No.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Guessed something right for once…” Barry muttered quietly to himself, undoing the knot before he set a plate on her lap, plopping two slices of pepperoni on top and laying the paper towel next to her hip. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Hunkering down on the floor with the box open before him, Jade observed as he wrapped his wide mouth around half a slice, humming appreciatively as he chewed. “So…” Jade folded the slice before biting. “What’s your name?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The rolling of Barry’s crisp jaw stopped. “Oh...well…” Wiping his pink lips, Barry shrugged. “I guess at this point it doesn’t hurt to tell you that. I’m Barry. Hey.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Barry flashed a warm grin, fingers aloft in an awkward wave and she couldn’t help but titter. “Hey Barry. I’m Jade.” </span>
  <em>
    <span>Cute. </span>
  </em>
  <span>The thought waltzed across her mind without Jade’s permission and she swallowed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>  “Hi Jade, I’m...sorry.” Chomping down, Barry rolled his dark blue eyes at himself talking around a mouthful. “I know I keep apologizing to you. And I know that doesn’t help anything when I have you strapped to a bed. I’m sorry…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s…” Jade stopped herself before she reassured him it was acceptable to hold her against her will within the confines of his apartment. “Yeah. I see why you have to, though…” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>They ate in silence. Jade examining Barry as he folded over his food. Hunched, always hunched. Did the man never stand up straight? Tall, broad, and yet despite a strong frame, he possessed a broken spirit unable to bear the weight.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Do you want another slice?” Barry offered the box, expressive eyebrow arched.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Shaking her head, Jade dusted off her fingers. “No, I’m good, but, um…” Jade looked past Barry’s head. “Could I...use the restroom?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh…sure.” Barry set the pizza box on the bed, adjusting his waistband. “Just...one minute, okay?” Barry dashed to the kitchen, snapping up the paper towels and all purpose cleaner. Perhaps a bit silly, but Barry was self-conscious of Jade seeing his bathroom in its current state of lassitudinal disarray, and he hastily wiped down every surface until he deemed the cramped interior passable. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Emerging, Barry nodded. “Okay, I’ll just, um…” Lower lip jutting, he rubbed the back of his neck as he thought. “I’ll untie you. Then you...you just go ahead, and I’ll stand back here, and, um...yeah. Just…” Barry bit his lip, voice shrinking as he rubbed an elbow with the opposite hand. “Just get back in the bed when you come out then, okay? And I’ll...I’ll tie you up again.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay.” Jade assented, and as his fingers fumbled with the silk she inhaled his scent. Unctuous notes of bergamot, sandalwood, and something else she couldn’t quite identify as his wide mouth frowned for a moment, dark brows narrowed in annoyance at the knot. “You smell nice.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Stiffening, Barry blinked. “Oh...um...thanks.” Barry slipped the tie away and stepped back. “There you go.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thank you.” Pumping circulation back into her wrists, Jade disappeared into the bathroom. Jade used the opportunity to ready herself for bed, figuring it would be easier than asking Barry to untie her again as she removed the pins from her scarlet tresses, brushing her teeth with her finger and washing her face.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jade emerged clutching a black lace bra in hand. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Oh fuck</span>
  </em>
  <span>… Nipples winking at him beneath the gauzy fabric of her dress, she placed the garment on his bedside stand and Barry tried to look anywhere else as Jade splayed herself on the bed. “Okay. I’m ready.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Alright.” Cringing at how high and unusual he sounded as he affixed her once more, Barry put the leftover pizza in the fridge before returning. “Well, um, I’m just...going to get ready for bed then…” Barry cleared his throat, selecting a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt before moving toward the bathroom. “Do you promise to stay quiet? Just for a minute?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah.” Jade nodded, smirking at his earnest expression. “I can do that.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Barry came out a moment later, tossing the bundle of his clothes in the hamper and Jade drank in the sight of the faded fabric creasing across his expansive shoulders, grinning at his inability to fill out the backside of his sweatpants. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Probably something wrong with me that I’m thinking about how hot the dude is who’s keeping me hostage. But damn...</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay, so, um…” Gnawing on the inside of his cheek, Barry’s cobalt eyes fell on the sheets. “I’m going to sleep on the floor. I’ll just take one of these…” Barry awkwardly slid a pillow out from underneath her, centering the other behind Jade. “And, um…” Tearing the sheet off, Barry gathered it up before floating the blanket down over her prone form. “Yeah, so...are you...well, I guess it’s stupid to ask if you’re comfortable…” Jade pulled a face, teetering her head and Barry sighed. “‘Yeah. Sorry...well...if you need anything. Just ask. I...I’m a really light sleeper, so…” Barry nestled down on the floor between the bed and the bathroom. “Just...please don’t yell, okay?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span> Adjusting a bit under the covers, Jade nodded. “Okay, Barry.” Big hand flipping off the orange lamp, Barry curled into a ball under the sheet, folding the pillow beneath his head. “Goodnight, Barry.” Jade’s honeyed voice murmured in the darkness.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Knees drawing up closer to his built chest in search of warmth, Barry swallowed. “Goodnight, Jade.”</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Groaning, Barry rolled and his elbow hit the wall. “Fuck!” Disoriented, for a bleary-eyed moment he couldn’t fathom his unfamiliar perspective. Then, nodding to himself, Barry stood, joints crackling like popcorn as he sleepily pawed his way to the bathroom.</p><p>Waking to a dull thump, Jade craned her neck to see Barry twisting in agony on the floor and clutching his arm before he rose, eyelids closed and brunette tresses sticking up in every direction. Large foot catching in the sheet before he flipped on the bathroom light, Jade blinked herself alert and her green eyes widened.</p><p><em> Oh fuck… </em> Beneath his gray sweatpants a monstrous erection curved, heavy and insistent before the slumber-addled Barry closed the door. Barry’s apartment was exceptionally small. Were Jade to shimmy herself to the utmost edge of the bed and jut out a leg, she could probably touch a toe to the bathroom door.</p><p>As a result, after the sound of him relieving himself (it always boggled Jade how men did that when they were hard) she began to hear...other noises. Clear Barry didn’t know she stirred, Jade listened to the urgent squelching, the huffing, hasty breaths, and tingled. <em> Fuck...I wonder what he would do if I called out to him right now? Tempting… </em></p><p>Taking himself in hand, Barry’s brain auto-played his favorite hits. Choice scenes from porn, a couple of pleasant memories of past sexual encounters, as he stroked over himself and tried to relax.</p><p>But as Barry tugged his thick cock, no embers flared. Cricking his neck and leaning back, a small, devious voice tickled Barry’s joined ear. <em> What about Jade? </em> Heat invading his sharp cheekbones, a surge pulsed through his erection and Barry squirmed. <em> She’s sexy, right? Those hands… Don’t pretend you didn’t notice how soft they were, Berkman. Her mouth… Bet those full lips would feel real nice, right? </em>Barry’s eyes flashed open, taking in the green tile and purposefully moving his hand to his muscular thigh.</p><p><em> But what if you pulled down those panties instead of her skirt? Huh, Berkman? </em> Cock throbbing with aching persistence, Barry formed a fist and sighed. “Fuck…” Jerking himself hard and fast, Barry tried to keep his body ahead of his thoughts, but to no avail. A deluge of images pummeled him and within moments he hurriedly unraveled the toilet paper, warm cum soaking into the tissue as Barry bit his lip to keep from mouthing Jade’s name.</p><p>“Oh!” Barry opened the door and the fields of Jade’s eyes were plowed with smirking knowledge as his cheeks pinked. “Good morning…”</p><p><em> Naughty. </em>“Morning Barry.” A teasing sing-song issued from her plump lips as Jade swiveled her body suggestively beneath the blanket. “Wanna come let me down now?”</p><p>“Sure…” Solidifying the bedrock of his jaw, Barry attempted to untie Jade without brushing even a fingertip over her tantalizing, pallid flesh. But when he moved to her right side, a pinky breathed over his hand and Barry flinched, unable to tell if her movement held intention. </p><p>Jade hopped up with a grin and headed to the bathroom. “Thanks.” Arching an eyebrow at her cheery disposition, Barry crossed his firm arms and waited after the door closed. </p><p>“Hey Barry?”</p><p><em> Fuck </em>. “Oh jeez!” Slapping a big hand over his eyes, Barry spun. Auburn hair. A bare shoulder. </p><p><em> Got ya. </em> Laughing, Jade peeked her head through the crack in the door. “I’m going to take a shower. Do you have something I can wear? I really don’t want to get back in those clothes after.”</p><p>Jade didn’t know one person could twitch this much. “Yeah, I, uh…” Crab walking to the closet, Barry glued his gaze to the far wall, blocking out the red and beige blur of temptation in his periphery as he groped in the closet. “Here.”</p><p>Extending an arm behind himself, Jade accepted the garments. “Thanks, Barry. Be right out.”</p><p>Spray of the water starting and soon accompanied by Jade’s sweet, mellifluous humming, a cacophony broke out within Barry as he paced.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Don’t think about her naked. </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Okay, that’s not helpful. </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Wet and naked. </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Really, super, not helpful. </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Washing herself… </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Stop. </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Suds… Rubbing places... </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Fucking stop it, Berkman. Damn it! </em>
</p><p> </p><p>Undeniably erect and irritated, Barry clenched and splayed his sizable hands. <em> Well, I can’t let her come out and see me like this… </em>A small, guilty part of Barry wanted to climb in the bed, bury his face in the pillow, breathe in the scent occupying her auburn tresses and fuck his hand to oblivion picturing Jade beneath him. But the risk that her smiling face might pop back out unannounced was too great.</p><p><em> Really? You’re jerking off in the kitchen? Classy, Berkman. </em>But Barry didn’t know what else to do with himself, yanking furiously with his broad back to the door, ear alert for the sound of running water and praying he finished before she did.</p><p>“<em> Oh fuck, Jade! Yes! </em>” Hearing the knobs twisting as he came, Barry rushed to clean up and wash his hands, and by the time Jade appeared, though remaining a delicate shade of fuschia, he was somewhat composed.</p><p>“Thanks.” Jade indicated the clothes, the overlarge shirt fluttering over her curves unbelievably erotic as she scrunched a hand through her damp red locks. “Mmm...that feels better…”</p><p>Clearing his throat Barry tipped his chin toward the mattress. “Okay, so…”</p><p>Jade looked from the sheets to Barry. “You’re really going to make me stay tied to the bed all day?”</p><p>“I…” Barry sighed, broad shoulders dropping. “Okay. Here… Lay down.”</p><p>“Okay…” Resigned, Jade opened her arms, and Barry fastened her to the headboard.</p><p>“Just...just hang on.” Clearing the pile of mail and lamp from the side table next to the kitchen, Barry removed the contents from underneath and wedged it in front of the door, figuring even if Jade managed to sneak past him while awake, he could get to her before she could clear a path. “Okay.” Barry untied her, smiling broadly. “There we go. Just…” Holding up his palms, Barry let them flap down to his sides. “Yeah.”</p><p>“Thanks.” Jade grinned, sitting cross legged on the bed. “So…” Patting her knees, she looked around. “What do you do all day? Normally? When you don’t have a woman tied to your bed, I mean?” Scarlet brow ticking up and mouth a pout, Barry shivered.</p><p>“Oh I, um…” <em> How does she go so long without blinking? </em> “Not much, honestly. Watch TV. Play video games. Do, um…” Scratching the side of his head, Barry picked up a controller. “Do you want to play? Maybe?”</p><p>That high, vulnerable note that sugared his last word tugged at her innards. “Okay, but…” Scooting forward, Jade made a face. “It’s not like...Call of Duty or Halo is it?”</p><p>“Oh no.” Barry waved a dismissive hand. “Just a racing game.”</p><p>Jade winced with her fingers halfway to the controller. “GTA?”</p><p>“Nope.” Firing up his console, Barry grinned. “I don’t really…” Barry plopped down at the base of the bed, deep blue eyes on the screen. “I don’t really like those kinds of games very much, so…”</p><p>Jade settled down next to him, the controller Barry passed her bereft of smudges and bearing a tiny piece of protective plastic in hand. Seeking Barry, his haunted gaze as the glow of the television threw his chiseled features into relief, the tension that never truly left his wide mouth, Jade’s heart clenched at the thought that he perhaps purchased the companion piece thinking someday, someone might want to play with him. But until Barry dragged Jade kicking and screaming into his hovel, no one ever did.</p><p>“Okay, so…” Fingers clicking rapidly, Barry turned to her, but his eyes did not. “Pick whichever color you want.”</p><p>“Alright.” Selecting a blue vehicle, the countdown began and instantly Barry’s car overtook Jade’s. “Hey, what the hell?” Jade swiveled her controller from side to side, lips pursed. “How are you going so fast?”</p><p>Concentration unwavering, Barry circled the track effortlessly. “I do this a lot.”</p><p>“Damn it.” Arms falling, Jade wiggled her knees and leaned forward. “Okay. Again.”</p><p>Barry clicked through, but a quarter of the way around the track, a dainty hand obscured his eyes. “Hey!”</p><p>“Ha! Gotcha!” Shoving Barry’s face out of the way, Jade practically sat on top of him, preventing Barry from rising until she crossed the finish line. “Yes!”</p><p>“What?” Jade freed him and Barry straightened up, giggling with his palms aloft. “How is that fair?”</p><p><em> Damn, he’s cute when he laughs. That wonky left eye and the overbite. Bet he doesn’t do it often enough, though. </em>Starting another round without him and zooming halfway through before Barry caught on, Jade winked. “Who said anything about fair?”</p><p>“Oh screw that.” Barry picked up his controller, bearing down with purpose. “You’re dead.”</p><p>They both froze. Cars crashed into the barrier, background music tinkling as Barry swallowed significantly and locked into Jade’s emerald eyes. “I’m...I’m sorry.” Barry pressed pause, sounds of their breathing inhabiting the silence. “You know I’m not going to hurt you, right?”</p><p>“Yeah.” Smile blossoming, Jade squeezed his carved forearm and as she let her hand linger, Barry found it difficult not to lose himself in the forest of her gaze. “I know, Barry. We can keep playing.”</p><p>“Okay.” Crooked, goofy grin radiating from his handsome features, Jade tore her attention back to the TV, the two of them racing quietly for a few minutes.</p><p>“This is a lot more fun than when Tom would make me watch him play those other games.” Squeaking past Barry for a moment, only for him to rush around her, Jade frowned.</p><p>Tongue sticking out in fervor, Barry twitched his controller to the left. “He made you watch him?”</p><p>“Yeah, all the time.” Jade nodded. “It was boring as hell. And if I didn’t tell him he was doing a good job he got...mad.” Vehicle slamming into the wall as Barry eyed her bruises and gritted his teeth, a soft crunch of plastic echoed beneath his sizable hands and he told himself to calm. “Plus…” Sighing, Jade took advantage of Barry’s lag and swept the victory. “He couldn’t fuck me worth a damn.”</p><p>Controller clattering, Barry quickly retrieved it from the floor, clearing his throat and suddenly extremely aware of the scant distance between their knees. “Oh...um...yeah, that’s…”</p><p>“I mean if a guy’s going to scream at you…” Pulverizing Barry’s run time, Jade threaded back her crimson waves with a smirk, green eyes ravenous. “He should at least make you scream, too, right?” </p><p>Mouth working open and closed in silence, Barry couldn’t draw himself away from her piercing stare. “Yeah...that’s...fair…” Jade moved a tad closer to him and Barry erupted in goosebumps, pushing his palms into the floor and hopping up. “You want to split the rest of that pizza? It, um...it’s always better cold, right?” Opening the fridge, Barry took a minute to breathe, the cool air helpful on his electrified skin as he commanded his body to relax. <em> Just...no.  </em></p><p>Barry returned with the pizza and a couple of glasses of water, grateful that while Jade ate she couldn’t say anything to make him blush.</p><p>Finishing his first slice, Barry arched up with a groan, stretching his expansive shoulders and cricking his neck. “You okay?” Jade looked at him quizzically, pausing with the next bite halfway to her mouth.</p><p>“Oh yeah, I’m fine.” Barry left the last piece for Jade and rested back against the bed. “Just sore.”</p><p>“From sleeping on the floor?” </p><p>Teetering his head, Barry shrugged. “Probably. But it’s fine.” </p><p>“Hmm…” Eyeing him, Jade said nothing. “Oh, that’s yours, by the way.” She pushed the pizza box towards Barry.</p><p>Shaking his head, Barry smiled. “That’s alright, you can have it. Anyway…” Barry patted his abdomen and rolled his eyes. “I need to stop eating take-out at some point, here.”</p><p><em> Is there anything he likes about himself? </em>“Aw, c’mon. You’re in great shape. And besides…” Jade rubbed his belly with an adoring grin. “It’s good to be a little soft.”</p><p><em> Why does she have to keep touching me? </em>Barry couldn’t remember the last time hands graced his pleading, pallid flesh; other than those trying to punch, to scratch, to scrape him off in desperate final moments of agony.</p><p>Well, that wasn’t quite true. Fuches touched him. A lot. It was unnerving, really. Barry didn’t know why. Familiarity, maybe. But for some reason, as uncomfortable as it made him, Barry was never able to tell the man to stop.</p><p>But Barry couldn’t recall the last time someone touched him softly. Tenderly. Holding. Caressing. So for Jade to put her hands on him, fingers a warm fog, drops of her essence clinging to every tiny dark hair on Barry’s body as he stepped out into the dew of her morning, willing to lose himself in the haze if it meant he could extend an arm into the cloud and be welcomed, proved overwhelming.</p><p>“Don’t.” Barry clasped her wrist and moved Jade’s arm back, pulling his knees up to his chest and hugging himself as he turned away.</p><p><em> What? I thought… </em>“Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to--”</p><p>“It’s fine.” Blinking, Barry shook his head, chewing on his tongue and nodding to himself. “Just...you shouldn’t be touching me.”</p><p>“Oh…” Voice woeful, Jade eventually retrieved the last slice of pizza, though she wasn’t particularly hungry. “Okay…”</p><p>Munching in the silence, Jade was grateful when Barry broke first. “You want to watch a movie or something?”</p><p>“Sure.”</p><p>Barry nodded, retrieving a small bin from beneath the television. “Okay, I don’t have much, but...whatever you want. I’m up for anything.”</p><p>Flipping through, Jade smiled at the innocent nature of his small compendium of titles before selecting one. “<em> Toy Story? </em>”</p><p>“Great.” Taking the DVD, Barry set it up. “Love this one.”</p><p>Pixar logo hopping across the scene, Jade turned to Barry, taking a steadying breath. “So...can I ask? Why...why did you kill Tom? I mean, I’d been with him for over a year and I never saw you come through, so I don’t know, maybe he fucked you over in a side job I never heard about, but...why?”</p><p>A deep ocean of blue hopelessness stared back unblinking from Barry’s face, ghost ships passing over the surface of the troubled waters before he responded. “Oh, I...it’s my job.” Jade tilted her head in confusion and her mouth started to open. “I’m...I do hits.”</p><p>“Oh.” Head bobbing thoughtfully, Jade stuck out her lower lip. “So...who wanted him dead? Aside from me, that is?”</p><p>Barry mirrored her smile, lifting a broad shoulder. “No idea. I just get the name and information from the guy I work with and take care of it, usually.”</p><p>“Huh...and…” Emerald eyes traveling to the red flag above the TV, Jade tipped up her chin. “You were in the service? Before?”</p><p>“Yup.” Nodding, Barry stood, retrieving his ribbon display case among the pile of discarded items from when he moved the table. “That’s me.” </p><p>“Oh my gosh!” Hand to her cheek and squealing, Jade brought the shadowbox bearing a photo of an exceptionally young, incredibly stern-looking Barry in uniform close to her face. “You’re so cute! With your little white hat…” A tiny giggle eked out of Barry and he shrugged humbly. “Damn…” Frowning, Jade’s fingers hovered an inch above the surface, hesitant to smudge the glass. “You look so unhappy, though. I bet...I bet that was hard. Over there.”</p><p>“It was. I was.” <em> I still am… </em></p><p>Barry seemed far away from her for a moment, not noticing Jade held the display out to him until she cleared her throat and he blinked himself back to the present. “Thanks for showing me.”</p><p>“Oh, you’re welcome.” Smile forced, Barry tucked his past away next to the metal lamp and old mail, hoping to put it out of his mind as he turned his attention back to the familiar characters on screen.</p><p>About a third of the way through the movie, Barry extended his arms overhead, a sigh grunting out of his solid chest as he stretched himself one direction and then the other. Jade scanned him inquisitively and rocked herself back and forth. “I don’t know how you just sit here on the bare floor all day. It’s only been a few hours and my back is already going nuts.”</p><p>“You get used to it.” Barry tilted his head, lifting a dismissive shoulder.</p><p>“But you don’t even have any padding back there.” Intentionally keeping her fingers a couple inches shy of his hip, Jade pointed and smirked.</p><p>Barry’s sharp jaw dropped incredulously. “Excuse me?” Narrowing his eyes in mock-indignation, Barry pursed his lips. “Well, we can’t all--” </p><p><em> Don’t do it. Don’t compliment her ass, Berkman. </em>Inhaling sharply, Barry reset with a shake of his head. “Well, I...usually for movies I just watch in bed anyway, so…”</p><p>“Oh.” Jade looked back over her shoulder. “Can we go up there, then?”</p><p>“Um…” The idea of sitting in a bed beside Jade was discomfiting, but not as much as the concept of trying to explain why he didn’t want to, so Barry nodded. “Yeah. Sure...okay.”</p><p>Were it possible for Barry to perch himself further on the edge of the mattress without toppling off, he would’ve done so. As it was, arms and ankles crossed, Barry’s tall body unnaturally stiff, the position didn’t prove much easier on his back than the floor.</p><p>Jade, on the other hand, lounged freely a hair right of the center of the bed, apparently perfectly content and cozy as she nestled down to watch. Less than half an hour remaining, Jade let out an irrepressible yawn. “Fuck, I’m sleepy.”</p><p>Rubbing a hand down his face, Barry bobbed his head. “Me too, honestly.”</p><p>“Can we take a nap?”</p><p>Barry clocked her use of the word ‘we’ and his sharp jaw clenched. “Um, yeah...I’ll just...tie you up then…” Speaking low, Barry scooped up the ties. Jade draped herself in a manner that could only be described as provocative, viridescent stare never leaving his face as Barry tugged the silk.</p><p>“You’re pretty good at that.” Jade murmured as Barry moved to her other wrist. “Not the first woman you tied to the bed, then?”</p><p>Fingers covered his hand. Barry allowed them. “No…” Whispering, Barry looked to the floor. “You are…” Barry stood, firmly telling himself to let go before he slumped around the bed, but as his knees hit the floor, he knew her words before Jade spoke.</p><p>“Barry...you can sleep up here. If you want to…”</p><p>Big hands fluffing his pillow, Barry shook his head, cautious of peering too far to his right, knowing if Jade’s bewitching form filled his vision, he would be spellbound. “I don’t think that’s a good idea, Jade.”</p><p>“Why not?” Voice laced with innocence, Jade twisted on the mattress, Barry’s favorite t-shirt clinging around her waist.</p><p>“I’ll just...I’ll just stay down here…” Facing the wall, Barry pulled the sheet up to his neck, but behind him came a small sound of concern.</p><p>“Barry, I don’t want you to hurt yourself.” A flutter in Barry’s gut encouraged him to curl further into the fetal position. <em> Why does she care about me? </em>“We’ll...we’ll just sleep, right? It’ll be okay…”</p><p>Jade witnessed a timid nod from the brunette head on the floor. “Okay…” Sheepishly coming to his feet, Barry backed himself onto the bed without looking at her, balling up on the edge as far away as possible before a hardly audible whisper left him. “Thank you…”</p><p>Hands dead above her and room dimming in the winter afternoon, though the sun never truly came out to play within the miserable confines of Barry’s frost-encrusted windows, Jade glanced around and sighed. “Barry, I’m cold.”</p><p>“Oh, um…” Shifting a little beside her, Barry blinked. “I’m sorry. I...I don’t have any other blankets and...well, the heat is all the way up, it just sucks.” Barry craned his neck back, regretting the action when reminded of a beautiful woman lying near. “I can give you my sheet, though.”</p><p><em> Poor guy would really sleep freezing, wouldn’t he? </em>Seeking the coast of a dark blue eye that wouldn’t assent to look back, Jade twisted her body to the side. “You could just hold me…”</p><p>Barry swallowed. Tucked his square chin down. Told himself he wasn’t cold, too. “I can’t do that.”</p><p>“Why not?” Biting her lip, Jade studied his wide back, Barry’s shield against the hateful world, against life, against her, which did nothing to prevent the true enemies from crossing the moat into his brain. </p><p>“Because you…” Barry slid his own powerful arms down and around, hugging himself, fingertips wedged between his love handle and the mattress. “You didn’t come here by choice. It’s not right, Jade.”</p><p>“Even if I want you to?” </p><p>Turning his face into the pillow, Barry inhaled. Exhaled. Inhaled. “Just…” Muffled words moseyed over to her from the tall man who, even in the privacy of his own bed, tried to make himself so tiny, keep himself from inconveniencing anyone. “Let’s just go to sleep.”</p><p>“Okay.”</p><p>Jade moved an inch. Barry uncoiled a smidge. Slither of silk over wood. Creak of an ancient mattress. Heavy weight adjusted back, telling himself he shouldn’t. Artful curves molded, begging for him to turn. </p><p>A ribbon of heat painted Barry from the center of his spine to his calves. Rise and fall of her breasts into his back lulling, Barry drifted. And for the first time since he couldn’t remember when, Barry’s dreams contained no screams; no weeping, beseeching faces. No. Instead eyes of rebirth and hair of rekindling, surrounding a smile whose closed lips spoke to Barry of forgiveness, granted him uninterrupted slumber.</p><p> Knocking. At that point in his unconscious reveries, the sound worked into Barry’s dream, headboard slamming into the wall as he fucked a screaming Jade into the mattress like he was shipping out again the next day.</p><p>Thankfully his brain eventually attached the sound to the front door and Barry snorted awake, jogging across the room and lifting the table. “Just a minute!” </p><p>“Barry, my boy!” Fuches’ smile that never quite reached those cold eyes flashed after Barry cleared a path, popping his face out and hiding the evidence of his arousal behind the door. “How’s it going? Haven’t heard from you since--”</p><p>“Good. Great.” Barry bobbed his head as though his neck were missing a bolt, cobalt eyes apprehensive as they bounced from Fuches back into the apartment. “What do you want?”</p><p>“Whoa, whoa, whoa…” Palms aloft, Fuches leaned back. “What’s the rush, buddy? Haven’t seen you for a few days. I come all the way out here in the storm and you’re trying to kick me back out in the snow? What gives?”</p><p>Sighing, Barry looked to the ceiling, shaking his head. “Sorry, Fuches, I just--”</p><p>
  <em> “Barry, can you come untie me? I need to use the restroom.” </em>
</p><p>Barry froze, mouth falling into a perfect ‘O’ in his alarm. Smirking, Fuches punched his vast shoulder conspiratorially, lowering his voice. “Oh...I see Barry. Good for you, buddy.” Fuches winked and Barry’s gaze skittered, blotches of pink floating up his high forehead. “Well here…” Reaching in his back pocket, Fuches unearthed an envelope and slapped it into Barry’s hand. “Buy her something pretty. Money from the Mercadian job. I’ll leave you <em> alone. </em>” </p><p>Fuches made his eyebrows dance and Barry nodded. “Okay...thanks.”</p><p>Exchanging a hasty goodbye, Barry released a breath he wasn’t aware he’d been holding as he flipped the lock, hauling the table back into place. </p><p>Barry tried to cover himself subtly as he rounded the corner to see Jade, her face a mask of concern. “I’m sorry…” Sitting up a bit, she shook her head. “I was half asleep when I called out. I didn’t realize someone was here. I wouldn’t have said anything. I don’t want you to get in trouble.”</p><p><em> Fuck...she doesn’t even wan’t to call for help now? </em>Of course the last thing Fuches would provide Jade was assistance, but she had no way of knowing that as Barry undid the knots. “No, it’s okay. Don’t apologize.” Erection descending with the weight of his guilt, Barry swallowed. “You haven’t done anything wrong.”</p><p> Plopping down on the bed, Barry stared blankly until Jade came out, running her fingers through the lava flow of her hair and patting her belly. “I’m getting kind of hungry.”</p><p>“Oh.” Blinking himself back to the present, Barry nodded. “Okay. Want to order Chinese?”</p><p>“Sure.” Jade hopped on the mattress with a grin, and as if she launched Barry to his feet, he retrieved a menu from the kitchen.</p><p>“Yeah, sorry about all the takeout. I really don’t have much around and I just...don’t want to leave you here long enough to go out and get groceries.”</p><p>Shrugging, Jade shook her head. “I don’t mind.” Barry imagined if he left, the likelihood of Jade trying to escape at this point was slim. But the idea that he might spin out on the icy roads, get in an accident, be delayed, no one knowing Jade remained trussed up and helpless, made him sick.</p><p>Though Barry restrained Jade before he went to meet the delivery driver, he tied loose bows, admitting to himself that Jade’s complacency did simplify matters as he returned with the warm bag and let her down before unpacking the offering. </p><p>Plates laden and crouched beside one another on the bed, Jade hummed in satisfaction as she expertly used the chopsticks to eat her General Tso's chicken, Barry opting for a fork. “Mmm...this is so good. Here, try some.” </p><p>Holding a bite out for Barry, he bent over, wrapping his wide mouth around and holding a hand in front of his chewing smile. “Yeah. Really good.” Barry didn’t tell Jade he ordered from Ming’s at least once a week. That he’d tried the dish probably dozens, if not a hundred times before. Instead he held out his container of beef and broccoli. “You want some?”</p><p>“Yeah.” Jade could’ve rummaged around in his meal for herself. Plucked out a piece with her chopsticks and gone back to their quiet eating. But instead she leaned forward, lips parted and green eyes a dare.</p><p>Fork prodding blindly, Barry had no idea what he brought to her mouth as he maintained the tether of their gaze, breath high and tight. “Here you go…”</p><p>Mouth encasing the tines, Jade took a cruel amount of time withdrawing, purring as she nodded and her jaw rotated. “Mmm…” Barry’s nostrils flared as he observed the muscles of her swan-like neck working while Jade swallowed. “Delicious.”</p><p>“Yeah, it’s...good.” Magnetism of her presence drawing him in, Barry’s sizable hand almost crushed his food in an effort to pull back. <em> Just eat the damn Chinese and stop flirting, Berkman. </em>“So, um…” Barry poked at a piece of broccoli. “Do you want to watch another movie or something, then?”</p><p>“Sure.” Jade chirped, nodding.</p><p>Selecting <em> The Incredibles </em> this time around, once they had their fill and Barry put the leftovers in the fridge, perhaps ten minutes passed before Jade’s curvaceous body rested against him, head perched on Barry’s broad shoulder. Barry didn’t tell her to move. He knew he should. Knew this could only lead to trouble. But Jade next to him felt so...right. Normal. Real.</p><p>Barry wanted to lift his arm. Snuggle down. Tuck her into the long line of his body and revel in how Jade would fit perfectly, inhaling the scent of her red hair. But Barry couldn’t. Scratching his sandpaper cheek, Barry folded his hands in his lap, unable to follow the plot of the movie he watched he-didn’t-know-how-many-times before as Jade nestled beside him.</p><p>Credits rolling, Jade stretched with a shivery sigh. “I know we didn’t really do anything today, but I think I could go back to bed already.”</p><p>“Okay…” Barry turned off the TV. Without asking, Jade positioned her wrists at the headboard as his hand moved toward the ties. Covering her with the blanket, Barry turned off the light, not remotely tired beneath his plaid sheet as he faced the bathroom. “Goodnight, Jade.”</p><p>“Night, Barry.” </p><p>A few minutes passed and Barry’s body tensed before her first word broke the silence. “Hey Barry?”</p><p>“Yeah?”</p><p>Jade bit her lip, eyeing his gray outline in the dim light and taking a breath. “You wanna make out a little?”</p><p>Locking his fingers together, Barry gripped until the knuckles whitened. “We...we can’t do that, Jade.”</p><p>Again, her two words, coated in a syrup that apparently lacked understanding. “Why not?”</p><p>“It’s just--”</p><p>Rustling fabric. Wheezing wood. Jade’s nose tickled the nape of his neck and every hair on Barry’s body stood at attention. “It’s just kissing…” Breath on his pale skin, warm and encouraging, Barry swallowed. “Don’t you want to kiss me?”</p><p>“It’s not that I don’t...Jade, I just…”</p><p>“Barry, I want you to…” Lips brushed a nod over his inflamed flesh. “If you want to. It’s okay.”</p><p>Barry flipped over, keeping his distance. Picking at the sheet between them, he couldn’t look at Jade’s face in the moonlight. “You really want to?” Voice a mouse peeking its nose out in trepidation, Barry blinked. “Really?”</p><p>“Yeah…” Resting their foreheads together, Jade waited for him, inches away and aching. “Kiss me, Barry.” </p><p>A peck. So fast Jade didn’t register Barry’s lips until he hid them behind his hand, shaking his head, eyes tight with a labored exhale through his nose. “Fuck. I shouldn’t have done that. Jade...I’m sorry. I--”</p><p>“Barry. Just kiss me.” Nudging their noses together, Jade’s words trembled with desire. “It’s okay. You can. I want you, Barry.” </p><p>Mouths meeting, Jade moved against him with gentle pressure until the stranger of her tongue asked Barry to dance. Barry wasn’t sure he remembered the steps as he cupped Jade’s face, tilting his head to deepen the kiss.</p><p>Faces swimming from side to side, Jade tossed a leg over Barry, looping him near with a contented sigh as his big hand wove into her hair. “Barry, I want you on top of me.”</p><p>“I...that’s…”</p><p>Barry shook his head and Jade claimed his pink lips again. “It’s okay. If you want to, you can. <em> Fuck </em>...Barry, I just want to feel you.”</p><p>“We shouldn’t do this…” But Barry’s body acted independently of his words, the scoop of Jade’s open legs, the plush of her abdomen, the heat between her thighs, exquisite and seemingly created for his shape alone as Barry notched his narrow hips, burgeoning erection burrowing between layers of fabric and resolutely rubbing over her clit.</p><p>Jade rocked her pelvis forward, smearing herself against Barry’s stiffness and moaning into his mouth until his tall frame started to grind. All the while though, Barry’s large hands never left her head. “Barry, you can touch me.” Barry’s face ticked from side to side against her lips, though he bore down hard with a tittering groan. “Fuck...you feel so good. I want to feel you. I’m so hot for you, Barry.”</p><p>“I don’t think--”</p><p>“Don’t you wanna feel how wet you make me, Barry?” Jade rotated beneath him alluringly, kissing Barry’s stubbled jaw.</p><p>For a second, ten fingers tore at her hair and Jade gasped, Barry straining above her, face scrunched as he wrestled internally. “Fuck… yeah. I do. Fuck...I’m sorry…” Hand cramming beneath the waistband of her panties, Barry wasted no time, a sound like a trombone falling through an air shaft exiting his solid chest as he spread the lips of her drenched pussy and vigorously fiddled Jade’s swollen clit. “I’m sorry...fuck…” </p><p>“Don’t be sorry.” Summoning air into her lungs, a high note of euphoria left her as Barry’s fingers raced. “<em> Fuck! You feel so good, Barry! Don’t stop! Fuck!” </em></p><p> Barry thrust against her hip, working Jade up and down on the mattress as she started to quake. “I’m sorry...I just...I didn’t wanna do any of this to you.” Lips hot and desperate below her ear, Barry’s throat tightened as his hand rushed. “I...<em> let me make it better </em>…”</p><p> Rutting into Barry’s touch, Jade’s neck arched and her eyes rolled. “<em> Barry, yes! Yes! Fuck! So good! I’m cumming! Fuck! Fuck! </em>” Jade’s body juddered haphazardly, dripping over Barry’s hand before he whipped his shining fingers free, scooping her still trembling form into his powerful arms.</p><p>“Barry, I wanna suck you so badly.” Breath shallow and nuzzling into him, Jade undulated in his grasp and Barry shook his head, a mewl of dissent leaving his pink lips. “Yeah...if you want me to. Fuck...Barry, it’s all I’ve been able to think about. Please.”</p><p>“I can’t do that.” Gripping her too tight, Barry’s voice wavered, keeping his eyes closed as his hips continued to gently pulse. <em> Just don’t look at her. Don’t look. If you don’t look it’ll be okay… </em></p><p>Jade emitted a noise of amorous discontent that zapped straight to the base of his cock as she drove the warmth between her legs into him and her lips dragged over Barry’s neck. “<em> Barry, please! I wanna suck your big cock right now! You can fuck my face! Cum in my throat! Anything! Please!” </em></p><p>“Oh fuck…” Sniffing, Barry swiped at his brimming sapphire eyes before he rose. “Okay...okay…” Barry started untying Jade’s right wrist and she shook her head. </p><p>“No, just come up here and put your cock in my mouth now. Leave me tied up. Come on, Barry. I want it so bad.”</p><p>“Uh-huh…” Scrambling up half blind, Barry licked his lips, tasted salt, bunching his sweatpants down before his erection bounced out. “I...I just...fuck…” Hand over his face, Barry held himself in front of Jade and a hot, tight heat closed around the wide head of his cock, tongue whipping around and hum buzzing into his tender flesh.</p><p>Air left Barry’s lungs as though he were shot, pitching forward, head to the wall as he held onto the bar, the other hand lacing into Jade’s scarlet tendrils. “I...I can’t…” Sheathing himself to the root, Barry wheezed with rapture as Jade’s cheeks hollowed around him. “I’ll...I’ll stop. Just a little…”</p><p>But Jade retracted with incredible suction, moaning as she yanked the thin skin of his cock over the tender tip before burrowing him in the slippery depths of her throat. “Oh <em> fuck...I...yes!” </em> Barry curved over, slamming his hips into her eager mouth, wet smacking sound filling the air as he barreled over her twitching tongue. “ <em> Jade, yes! So warm! Fuck! Fuck! Don’t stop!” </em>Muscular thighs opening and cradling her face to his crotch, Barry hunched down, propelling Jade’s head into the mattress with merciless abandon as his shouts turned to sobs.</p><p>“<em> Fuck! Jade! I can’t stop! Fuck! I...I...Jade! FUCK! </em>” Brow crashing to the headboard, Barry’s pelvis nailed her into the pillow again, and again, and again; cock throbbing hot cum so deep into her throat that Jade tasted a mere hint of his salty essence as Barry whined above her, tears falling from his nose onto her face.</p><p>  Ripping his damp cock out of her mouth, Jade gasped as a weeping Barry rolled off the bed, lifting his pants and flicking on the light. Drool smeared over her chin and blinking, Jade watched in confusion as Barry started pacing, flicking out his wrists and muttering to himself.</p><p>“No...no, no, no...that’s…” Wide palms smacking his forehead violently, Jade stared in alarm. “<em> Fuck! </em> No. How could--”</p><p>“Barry, what the hell are you doing?” Jade sat up, trying to fold her hand and get free of her bonds. “Stop it!”</p><p>Eyes a flood and face a panic, Barry looked like he might hyperventilate as the circuit of his large feet quickened, irregular, and he flapped his hands. “I...I can’t believe I just did that to you. Fuck, Jade, I…” Crisp jaw hanging, the tumultuous oceans of his eyes were on the ceiling as Barry stopped moving for half a moment. “I force you to come here. I tie you up. You’re this...this...abused woman and I just...I fucking do that!” Barry punched the side of his head with such velocity he knocked himself off balance and Jade pulled at the ties, but the knots merely tightened. </p><p>Barry wound up to hit himself again. “<em> HEY!” </em> Jade barked, razors hidden in the honey of her voice as she glared at him. “Barry! Stop it!” Tone shocking him, Barry lowered his arms. “You didn’t <em> do </em> anything to me, alright? We fooled around. Together. I wanted to. It’s fine. You didn’t do anything wrong.”</p><p>“But Jade, I--”</p><p>“No.” Cutting him off before he could whip himself into a frenzy, Jade leaned forward. “Stop. This was good. Barry, just…” Green eyes wincing, she shook her head. “Be nicer to yourself, for fuck’s sake.” Barry deflated, nodding demurely. “And I’m not ‘this abused woman’ for the record.” Jade scoffed. “Just because Tom knocked me around doesn’t mean I don’t know that you’re hot and I want to fuck you. I don’t need another man telling me my mind, so you can cut that shit out right now.”</p><p>Barry shifted his weight from side to side, swiping the moisture away from his cheeks. “Okay…”</p><p>“Now come and untie me.” </p><p>Folding his lips under at her command, Barry nodded. “Okay.” Barry picked apart the knots, Jade lifting her collar to wipe the spit from her face before tucking her cold hands beneath her thighs. “You can, um…” Scratching through his dark locks, Barry started to spin out again as he looked to the door, voice creaking. “You can just go then. I won’t stop you. If you wanna…” Breath hitching, Barry shook his head. “If you wanna call the cops or whatever, that’s fine. I…” Sharp jawline popping as he gritted his teeth, a fresh rivulet trickled down Barry’s cheek. “I deserve it.”</p><p>“Barry, will you stop?” Rolling her eyes, Jade held out her hands. “Just come here.” Barry refused and Jade beckoned again. Bounding back into bed, Barry dove into Jade’s arms, crying into her shirt (well, his shirt) while she rubbed slow, comforting circles into his wide back. “Barry. Barry, really, it’s okay.” Jade kissed the top of his chestnut waves. “You didn’t do anything wrong. We’re good, here.”</p><p>Poking his head up, eyes surrounded with a red rim of questioning, Barry sniffled. “Are you sure?” </p><p>“Yeah.” Jade smiled, tickling under his chin. “I liked it. It felt good. Did you like it?”</p><p>Barry lifted a shy shoulder, gnawing on his pink lip. “Yeah…”</p><p>“Okay then.” Giving him a brief peck, Jade ruffled Barry’s hair. “We’re all good.”</p><p>With a watery grin, Barry bobbed his head. “Okay.”</p><p>“Should we go to sleep?” Jade pulled back the corner of the blanket and Barry nodded, craning over to flip off the light. </p><p>“Alright.”</p><p>Shuffling down, Jade looked over her shoulder. “You better hold onto me, though, Barry. I still might try to get away.” With a stuffy giggle Barry scooted in, molding himself to Jade’s back and snaking his powerful arms around her middle. Awash on the red sea of her hair and soothed by the steady row of her heartbeat, Barry slept, eyes dry and smile limitless.</p><p> </p><p>***</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>Consciousness blossomed over Jade and she discovered Barry encasing her like a squid. Fingers in her face, a pinky in the nostril. One shapely leg wedged between hers, the other looped over. And a weighty, apparently drooling, head, half balanced on top of her own. In retrospect, Jade had no idea how either of them slept. But as Barry’s morning erection surged into the crack of her ass and she wiggled her hips back with devilishly purposeful rotations, she had an inkling of how they would wake up.</p><p>“Hmm? <em> Whu--?”  </em></p><p>“<em> Hey!” </em>A dribble of saliva hit Jade’s temple and she patted Barry’s cheek. “Wake up, you’re slobbering all over me.” </p><p>“Huh?” Gummy eyes spotting the sheen left by his loose lips, Barry grabbed a corner of the sheet to wipe Jade’s face, but in his sleep-addled state, petting her cheek perhaps a bit too hard. “Oh sorry…”</p><p>“<em> Gah!” </em>Laughing, Jade batted him away. As alertness came, Barry noticed where his cock fell against Jade’s backside.</p><p>“Oh shit…” Barry pulled his hips away, digging the heel of his palm into his eye socket and yawning. “Really sorry…”</p><p>Hooking a hand over him, Jade lassoed Barry near. “Hey...come back here…”</p><p>Barry cautiously edged closer and Jade took his wrist. Fingers discovering the warmth beneath her shirt, she guided Barry to her breasts, pillowy and smooth, nipples hardening beneath his touch as she arched back, sleepy face smiling. “Good morning.”</p><p>“Morning.” Grinning, Jade presented her lips before him, eyes green pools of lust. Barry dipped in, their bodies waving together as her ass slid up and down, up and down the considerable length of his cock, urging Barry forward.</p><p>“This is okay?” Barry murmured, kissing a path back to her ear.</p><p>Nodding, Jade rubbed against him with intent. “Mmm...yeah. It’s good. Barry…” Fingers trickling through his brunette tresses, she fused their mouths again. “Do you want to fuck me?” </p><p>Nostrils gaping and Adam's apple bobbing, Barry brushed his lips over Jade’s neck. “Yeah...yeah, I do.”</p><p>“Okay.” Jade reached down to remove her shorts beneath the sheets before taking Barry’s hand, depositing his fingers into the dew between her thighs. As he played over her clit, Jade reached back to squeeze his hip, voice a throaty whisper. “Come on…”</p><p>Barry stopped with a thumb in the waistband of his sweatpants. “Jade, I...I don’t have any condoms.” Peering over his shoulder, he frowned. “I haven’t been with anyone for a long time, so…”</p><p>“It’s alright.” Jade smiled. “I have an IUD. We’re good.” </p><p>“Alright.” Seeking her beneath the covers, Jade lifted a leg, Barry parting the lips of her pussy and pushing the head of his cock to her entrance. “Wait...Jade, um…”</p><p>“Barry, please, <em> just fuck me!” </em>Jade whined, tilting her hips back and drawing an inch of him inside, which nearly caused Barry to drive forward and forget his question. “How many times do I have to tell you I’m into this?”</p><p>Pushing away with a composing blink, Barry shook his head. “No. I mean...no, not that. Do...do you want me to go down on you first?” Barry combed the auburn strands out of her face. “I’d like to.”</p><p>“Oh!” Jade perked up, smiling. “Yeah. If you want to, sure.” </p><p>“Great.” Barry pressed Jade’s shoulder to the mattress, whipping her shirt overhead before capturing her mouth. Huge hands roamed over her body, avoidant of the bruises before Barry descended. </p><p>Given Barry’s timid disposition, Jade wasn’t expecting fireworks. And as his tongue started circling her clit, routinely, though clear Barry knew where everything needed to go, it felt...nice enough. But nothing more. Threading her fingers into his dark locks, Jade tried to calm herself, find the silence within that would help her reach the precipice. Regulating her breathing, Jade figured praising the shattered man between her thighs couldn’t hurt. “Mmm...Barry, that feels really good.”</p><p>As if she pulled a trigger Jade didn’t know existed, Barry’s wide mouth swarmed over her with a groan, lapping feverishly, huge hands clamping over her hips and dragging them onto his sturdy jaw. “Oh...oh <em> fuck… </em> Barry, that’s…” Looking down at him in shock, lightning crackled behind those stormy blue eyes, zeroed in on her every twitch, each gasp, as Barry’s pink lips enveloped her swollen clit and began to furiously suck. </p><p>“<em> Oh Barry! Fuck! Fuck, that’s good!” </em> Thighs chafing against his rough cheeks, Barry hauled her legs over the shelf of his shoulders. And when two lengthy fingers entered Jade, she couldn't help but break Barry’s request not to scream. “ <em> Fuck! Barry, yes! You give good head! Fuck! Don’t stop!” </em></p><p>Barry devoured her ravenously, cupping Jade’s breast as he flicked his tongue and she seized beneath his ministrations. Trying to recall the last time someone let him do this, Barry realized no one shared his bed for years. Mournful at the thought, he consumed Jade with renewed voracity, plunging his arm forward until she screeched, her heels rattling over his broad back.</p><p>“<em> Barry! Fuck! Yes! I...I...FUCK!” </em> Clinging to his scalp, Jade thrashed, evidence of her desire flooding his square chin as the sounds of her ecstasy became breathless and she convulsed. </p><p>Barry redoubled his efforts when a dainty hand hurriedly tapped his vast shoulder. “No, just...<em> just fuck me! Fuck me, now!” </em>Gasping, Jade tried to pull him up with weak arms.</p><p>Nodding, Barry lifted his collar to wipe his face. “Okay.” </p><p>Barry inched down his sweatpants and positioned himself, but Jade shook her head, snatching at the hemline of his shirt. “No, show me. I wanna see you. Please.”</p><p>“Oh.” Half grinning, Barry peeled the fabric off. “Alright.”</p><p>“Fuck, you’re so sexy…” Jade’s fingers pranced through the field of his fluffy dark chest hair and Barry giggled before she laid back. “Okay. Come on.”</p><p>“Alright, just…” Standing to kick free of his sweatpants and boxers, Barry mounted Jade once more, fusing their lips together. “You ready?”</p><p>Polishing his prominent cheekbone, Jade smiled. “Yeah.”</p><p>Barry rocked forward and as the moist heat compressed his imploring cock he groaned, slithering his powerful arms beneath Jade and twisting their foreheads together. “Jade, um…” Retracting, Barry’s rounded teeth caught his lip before he drove forward. “I’m...I’m sorry if I can’t make it very long. You just....” Moan trickling from him, Barry’s hand moved between her legs. “You just feel so good and I...I’ve been alone for...for a long time, and--”</p><p>“Barry, it’s fine.” Kissing his chin, Jade acclimated to the stretch of his thick cock. “Don’t worry about it. You took care of me plenty, anyway.”</p><p>“Do you…” Enthralled by her squeeze, Barry’s pelvis sped up. “Do you want to get on top? Or...or anything?”</p><p>Jade shook her head, taking Barry by the love handles as he undulated above. “No, I like feeling you on top of me, Barry. Just fuck me. It’s okay. You feel so good.”  </p><p>“Yeah, is that…” Propelling himself forward, Jade tried to sync to his rhythm as Barry twiddled her clit, breath labored and lips urgent. “Is that good? Huh?”</p><p>“Fuck...<em> fuck, Barry! Yes!” </em> Slamming her hips skyward, Jade dug her heels into the mattress and panted. “ <em> Fuck me! Don’t stop!” </em></p><p>Barry pounded recklessly, headboard crashing into the wall until his Metallica poster swung loose. “Like that? Huh? Is this good? You like when I fuck you like this, Jade? Huh? <em> Huh?” </em></p><p>“<em> Oh fuck! Yes! You have such a great cock! Keep going! Fuck me, Barry! Yes! Fuck! Fuck! </em>” Constricting around him, Jade folded forward, nails scraping over his broad back as she shrieked. </p><p>“<em> Oh fuck, Jade!” </em> Both of Barry’s big hands crept beneath her ass, holding Jade as close to himself as possible as he viciously humped. “ <em> Fuck! Jade! I’m gonna cum! Fuck! Fuck!” </em> Face buried in her neck and whimpering in her skin, Barry jostled them vehemently until every muscle in his firm body flexed in silence. A whine leaked from his pink lips as Barry’s pelvis jumped, left eye twitching incessantly as he filled Jade with pulse after pulse of warm cum before he quivered and fell limp.</p><p>“Oh fuck...Jade...Jade…” Barry scooped her close, kissing over her sweaty flesh and rocking them back and forth. “Fuck...thank you…”</p><p>Chuckling wearily, Jane petted over Barry’s damp hair. “You don’t have to thank me, Barry. Especially when you fuck me like that.”</p><p>A mismatched grin waited for her when Barry lifted his head, touching down for a languid kiss before rolling off and snuggling Jade close. After a few minutes of companionable silence, Jade rubbing over his endearing little belly, she cleared her throat. “Barry...maybe this isn’t the best time to ask, but...have you...have you thought about it? What you’re going to do with me, I mean?”</p><p>Sighing, Barry’s fingers flowed over the curve of her body. “I don’t know.” Barry tilted his head down, skin under his neck bunching as he blinked at Jade. “What do you want to do?”</p><p>“Honestly...I don’t know, either.” Jade pulled a face, shrugging.</p><p>Tightening the circle of his strong arms, Barry planted a kiss to the top of her crimson waves. “Maybe...at least for today...we don’t have to know.”</p><p>“Yeah.” Smiling, Jade nestled closer into the warmth of Barry’s broad frame. “Maybe not.”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thank you for taking the time to read! If you enjoy this story, please leave a comment or come say hi on tumblr at fandomtransmandom. I also accept requests!</p></blockquote></div></div>
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